Emma Meyer 12th September, 2012 EDC 102H Dr. Fogelman
Non-School Academic Influences It seems in today’s society that the majority of criticism that results from a child’s failed education falls upon their teachers. While some accountability must be placed on these educators, I have come to acknowledge that a supportive family life in regards to schooling plays a significant portion in a child’s academia as well. After reading numerous essays about non-school academic influences, I have found that most students attribute their successfulness to their families, whether it be their parents, siblings, or likewise. Much like my peers, I owe a great deal of my academic achievements to my parents, who were, and continue to be, a consistent motivator within my schooling.
My parent’s involvement with school started at a very young age. I never even can remember a time in which I considered the option of not going to college, never mind not graduating from high school. To me, up until recently, I believed that to be the norm, for it was an unwritten expectation within our household having both my parents, and brothers, already graduate from college. The most important value I can attribute them instilling in me, other than the aforementioned, was that of the fun that can coincide with learning. My love of acquiring new knowledge that was fostered at a young age is still prominent today, seen through the excessive amount of questions I apparently ask daily. This adoration of new intellect is the main reason I have been this successful throughout my education.
Along with these intangible values, both of my parents taught me very applicable areas of studies as a child. From what I can remember, even before kindergarten at age four, my mom would read a short passage from a book to me at bed time. This routine, I believe, is one of the main reasons I have a love for reading. My mother implanted the importance of reading before I was even able to grasp the full concept. While my mom prioritized the importance of literature during my childhood, progressing my reading level and writing abilities a great deal, it was my dad that concentrated more on the mathematical aspect of education. My father, believing that Singapore had a greater math curriculum than that of the states, ordered elementary arithmetic books from the country for me to complete in addition to my other school work. This task, he found, was a greater challenge than solidifying the importance of literature in me, for I found math to be much more difficult and monotonous. Nonetheless, my dad continually pushed me to improve my skills, to the point where I was completing advanced multiplication and division problems in second grade, while my classmates continued to work on basic addition and subtraction.
While I detested the work that my father pushed me to do, I now acknowledge the importance of it, and am thankful for having him there to require it. There would have been no way I could have completed advanced calculus without the basic fundamentals he taught me at a young age, nor could I have aced all my English classes in high school without the help of my mother. It is for these reasons, among many others, that I attribute a great deal of academic success to the positive influences of my parents.
12th September, 2012
EDC 102H
Dr. Fogelman
Non-School Academic Influences
It seems in today’s society that the majority of criticism that results from a child’s failed education falls upon their teachers. While some accountability must be placed on these educators, I have come to acknowledge that a supportive family life in regards to schooling plays a significant portion in a child’s academia as well. After reading numerous essays about non-school academic influences, I have found that most students attribute their successfulness to their families, whether it be their parents, siblings, or likewise. Much like my peers, I owe a great deal of my academic achievements to my parents, who were, and continue to be, a consistent motivator within my schooling.
My parent’s involvement with school started at a very young age. I never even can remember a time in which I considered the option of not going to college, never mind not graduating from high school. To me, up until recently, I believed that to be the norm, for it was an unwritten expectation within our household having both my parents, and brothers, already graduate from college. The most important value I can attribute them instilling in me, other than the aforementioned, was that of the fun that can coincide with learning. My love of acquiring new knowledge that was fostered at a young age is still prominent today, seen through the excessive amount of questions I apparently ask daily. This adoration of new intellect is the main reason I have been this successful throughout my education.
Along with these intangible values, both of my parents taught me very applicable areas of studies as a child. From what I can remember, even before kindergarten at age four, my mom would read a short passage from a book to me at bed time. This routine, I believe, is one of the main reasons I have a love for reading. My mother implanted the importance of reading before I was even able to grasp the full concept. While my mom prioritized the importance of literature during my childhood, progressing my reading level and writing abilities a great deal, it was my dad that concentrated more on the mathematical aspect of education. My father, believing that Singapore had a greater math curriculum than that of the states, ordered elementary arithmetic books from the country for me to complete in addition to my other school work. This task, he found, was a greater challenge than solidifying the importance of literature in me, for I found math to be much more difficult and monotonous. Nonetheless, my dad continually pushed me to improve my skills, to the point where I was completing advanced multiplication and division problems in second grade, while my classmates continued to work on basic addition and subtraction.
While I detested the work that my father pushed me to do, I now acknowledge the importance of it, and am thankful for having him there to require it. There would have been no way I could have completed advanced calculus without the basic fundamentals he taught me at a young age, nor could I have aced all my English classes in high school without the help of my mother. It is for these reasons, among many others, that I attribute a great deal of academic success to the positive influences of my parents.